


untitled

by justbecauseyoubelievesomething



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Angst, Dark One Emma Swan, Dark One Rumplestiltskin | Mr. Gold, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-23
Updated: 2018-03-23
Packaged: 2019-04-07 01:33:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,102
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14070018
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/justbecauseyoubelievesomething/pseuds/justbecauseyoubelievesomething
Summary: A little one-shot that I did just to force myself into a writing mood, but that I might add more to. Some alternate universe where Emma and Killian attempt to take down evil!Rumple without letting his dark magic corrupt Emma.





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**Author's Note:**

> While attempting to make myself work on a different fic, I ended up writing this and I think it actually turned out decent. Since I wasn't planning on keeping it, the AU isn't fully formed in my head, but I imagine that Emma used be an apprentice of Rumple's and this is a bold attempt on her part to snuff him out without letting the darkness attach itself to her. Or something like that. Let your imagination fill in the gaps!

Emma drew her sword, relishing the smooth slide of the blade from its scabbard. The flickering torchlight of the cavern made her blink a few times, trying to keep her eyes focused on the scaly imp leering at her.

  
“Come on, Emma,” Killian said, and she tilted her head slightly to meet his eyes. The pirate grinned and brandished his own sword expertly. “Let’s show the Crocodile that we didn’t come here to play.”

  
Emma drew a deep breath and gave her husband a quick nod. The tiled floor was smooth under their feet as they darted forward, both instinctively curving outward a bit as they ran, flanking Rumplestiltskin.

  
The Dark One seemed un-phased by their approach, merely crowing with laughter once again. “Yes, come dearies. Show me what you do to people like me. Or should I say… like us?”

  
Emma tried not to wince at his biting words. She quickened her steps. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Killian falling back just a bit to give her the first go. She tightened her fists around her sword and took the last three steps in one leap, using her momentum to bring the sword swinging at a downward angle towards Rumplestiltskin’s neck. The imp waved his hand and a burst of invisible energy met her sword like a shield. She was ready for the inevitable impact and let herself fall back a step as the Dark One immediately turned to defend himself in the same manner against Killian’s following swing. That was her window.

  
Emma thrust her hand forward and with a whispered prayer sent forth every last tendril of magic she could summon. The burst of white magic hit the imp broadside sending him tumbling towards Killian. Thankfully, the pirate threw himself out of the way, sliding on his forearms across the tiles. Emma kept her focus on Rumplestiltskin. Her magic threw him against the wall of the cavern, pinning him under its strength. He groaned as the white light appeared to soak into his chest, lighting his skin with an unnatural glow.

  
Emma drew closer, keeping the stream of magic steady. Rumplestiltskin groaned and tried to flail one hand towards her with a burst of fire magic. The weak ball of flames was easy for Emma to duck and it fizzled out just after floating lazily over her head.

  
“It’s over, Dark One,” she yelled. She held her head high willing her strength to keep going. Rumplestiltskin’s entire body was beginning to shimmer, highlighted from the inside with the burning white of Emma’s magic. She took another step towards him. “You’ve lost.”

  
“Have I?” he chuckled and the raspy weakness of his voice was somehow worse than before. His lolled to one side and his breathing grew choppy as he met Emma’s eyes. “You, my dear, have won nothing. You are nothing.”

  
Emma felt her anger bubble forth and she let it go, releasing everything she had into her stream of magic. “I am not nothing!” she screamed stepping closer. Rumplestiltskin’s body arched and he let out a pained yell as her magic rushed through him. “I was never nothing!” she declared and with one final push she felt her magic overtake his darkness. The Dark One’s body exploded, the white light pouring through and disintegrating the strange shadowy body Rumplestiltskin had inhabited. The light blew in a ring outward, throughout the cavern, snuffing out every torch.

  
Emma fell on her butt, blinking in the aftermath. The imprint of the magic burst was flashing against her eyelids with every blink and in her vision against the pitch black of the cavern.

  
“Emma?” She tried to roll over to her hands and knees to try crawling towards Killian’s voice, but every muscle was screaming in pain. She’d exhausted her magical reserves and her body was not happy.

  
“I’m here,” she managed to rasp out. Something was wrong. It felt like something icy slithering through her stomach.

  
“Hold on, Swan.” She heard Killian fumbling with something and then the familiar striking sound of a lighter. The clicks resulted in a tiny glow from somewhere behind Emma and she tried even harder to twist around but she simply couldn’t move. Her limbs were glued down. The slithering intensified and she wondered if she was going to throw up.

  
The little glow brightened and she realized that Killian had relit a torch. He ran around in front of her field of vision, smiling triumphantly. “You did it, Emma!”

  
She gave him a weak smile in return. “Yeah.”

  
He held out a hand and she managed to reach out and ride his grasp back to her feet. The icy tendrils snaked their way through her arms and legs, keeping her afloat. Killian was saying something, but his voice sounded very far away, as if she were underwater. Absently, Emma looked down at her forearm and watched as a line of black crawled swiftly through her veins straight up into the palm of her hand. She watched in fascination as the ink-like lines spider-webbed across her wrist, stark against her pale skin.

  
“Emma?” She heard Killian’s voice still very echoing and not-Killian. She looked up and noticed his eyes flicker to her wrist then widen in concern. He looked back up mouth open to say something, but he never got the chance. Quick as wink, Emma saw her own hand jerk forward and straight into Killian’s chest. She yanked it back out again with his heart, his warm, throbbing heart, grasped in her fist.

  
Killian’s mouth stayed open as he gasped for air. He fell to his knees as Emma watched her fist squeeze the heart a little harder. She blinked and tried to fight back to the surface of this strange feeling that had overtaken her. But it was like trying to push her way out from under something very heavy. And cold, so very cold. She relaxed again and the intense cold eased into a bearable numbness. Her fist squeezed a little more and Killian let out a choking noise. He dropped the torch and the sputtering light threw his face into shadows as he braced his hand against the floor. His lips were moving and Emma found herself leaning closer to be able to hear what he was saying.

  
“It’s not your fault, Emma. Remember that it’s not your fault,” he wheezed over and over. Emma couldn’t take her eyes off his face, some small part of her screaming in agony with him, as she gave his heart one last squeeze and let the dust trickle through her fingers.


End file.
